


First Day Gifts

by OceanTheSoulRebel



Series: Gilded Leaves [2]
Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age: Inquisition
Genre: F/M, Fluff, a smidge of Dalish tradition
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-19
Updated: 2018-07-19
Packaged: 2019-06-12 21:06:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 973
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15348735
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OceanTheSoulRebel/pseuds/OceanTheSoulRebel
Summary: Come find me on tumblr atocean-in-my-rebel-soul!Comments and concrit always appreciated! Thank you for reading!





	First Day Gifts

_ Wintermarch 9:44 Dragon, Skyhold _

 

First Day dawned clear and cold over the Frostback Mountains. He would know, because it was as damnably cold  _ inside _ the room as it was outside, and only his half of the bed held any degree of warmth.

Varric grudgingly woke up and wrapped the blanket around his naked shoulders before trodding across the room toward the fireplace. What was usually a few minutes’ worth of of work drew long, due to sleepiness and his frozen fingers. Damn, this place was cold. He would never be used to it.

He had just coaxed the fire to life when the door opened, bringing a new draft that snuck up under the blanket to tickle his bare legs. Varric cursed and stumbled back to the bed. “Close the door,” he muttered raspily, “and get over here.”

Shale’s laughter filled the room but she did as she was told, locking the door behind her. He watched her strip her tunic and trousers, tossing them aside as she did. It wasn’t some erotic show he might find at the Rose back in Kirkwall, but something comfortable, a familiar routine.

_ Like coming home.  _

The thought fanned the lingering warmth she had inspired in him.

“It’s too early to be awake,” Varric informed her as she crawled into bed. “I don’t know how you stand it. And if you think you’re gonna put your cold toes on me, think again.”

“I wouldn’t  _ dream _ of doing that,  _ emma lath _ ,” she replied, just before she slid her feet along his calves. Shale laughed at his resulting yelp and settled into his arms. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I couldn’t resist! You looked so nice and warm, perfect for my frozen feet.”

“Yeah, well, if you ever wore real shoes, you wouldn’t have hypothermia.”

He wrapped his arm around her waist and chuckled as she plastered apologetic kisses up his throat, working her way slowly over his jaw.

“Good morning,” Shale murmured when she reached the corner of his mouth. She threaded a hand into his hair and brushed her thumb over his temple affectionately. Lips pressed against warm, soft lips in a sleepy haze.

Varric smiled and pressed his brow to her own. “I missed you.”

“I was gone less than ten minutes.” Her thigh slid easily between his own. “You didn’t have time to miss me.”

“Call me sentimental, Willow, but I’ll always miss you when you’re not around.”

They dozed entangled with each other, the fire quickly chasing off the chill. Outside their chamber door Skyhold woke to the new year, the castle growing noisy as the morning wore on.

“Is it always this loud around your holidays?” she asked after a particularly loud peal of laughter sounded in the corridor outside their room.

Varric chuckled into her hair. “Something like that. Especially on feast days such as today. Hold on, I gotta get up.”

The fire may have warmed the room but the stone floor was still cold, a fact he learned when his feet hit bare stone. Varric swore and stepped quickly to his writing desk, opening a drawer. He paused at the sight of the wooden box within, stained a rich, deep mahogany and padded with ring velvet; it fit easily in the cradle of his hand as he returned to bed.

“I want you to have this,” Varric said. “I’ve never met many Dalish who wear a lot of jewelry, but… here.” He offered the wooden box to her.

She shook her head, looking for all the world like a hare trapped by a fox. “You don’t… you don’t mean that,” she insisted. “You don’t know what this means.”

Well, that wasn’t the reaction he’d hoped for. “What don’t I know, my Willow tree?”

Shale pulled the blanket up over her head, unable to meet his gaze. “You know the Dalish mostly hold communal property. Weapons, tools, anyone can use those. If you didn’t craft it for a specific person or yourself, it’s held as clan property. Jewelry is… special.” Her voice quieted to a hushed whisper. “From lovers, it’s a bonding gift. Like marriage.”

“Shale, look at me,” he asked, his hand pulling gently at the quilt. She slowly uncovered her face, her wide, hazel eyes meeting his own. Varric set the box down on the pillow between them and threaded their fingers together.

“No matter what happens, I’m not going anywhere. I know jewelry is a special thing among your people; shit, it’s not exactly a casual token among humans or dwarves, either.” He smiled. “But I’d say we’ve got a pretty good thing going on here, don’t we?”

Shale didn’t say anything, only emitted a low, throaty noise somewhere halfway between a whine and a groan. Her attention flickered intermittently from his face to the box.

“It’s yours if you want it, Shale,” Varric murmured. He raised their clasped hands to lay a kiss over her knuckles. “If not, then that’s okay, too.”

He watched her eyes, round as saucers as she took back her hand and opened the box. Her hand trembled as she peeled back the hinged lid and withdrew the ring. Two thin bands of white gold twined together, like the horns of the small herd of halla Shale and Inquisitor Lavellan had brought with them halfway across the continent three years ago.

“Varric,” she breathed. “This is… it’s too much. I don’t know what to say.” Shale smiled and turned the ring over in her fingers.

“Do you like it?” Varric raised his hand to smooth over her hair, his fingers running through the thick auburn strands.

The ring slid home on her right hand, glinting in the firelight. “I do.” Shale pushed him to his back and easily straddled his lap.  _ “Ar lath ma, vhenan,”  _ she murmured against his lips. “I really do.”

**Author's Note:**

> Come find me on tumblr at [ocean-in-my-rebel-soul!](https://ocean-in-my-rebel-soul.tumblr.com)  
> 
> 
> Comments and concrit always appreciated! Thank you for reading!


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